Six-seat premium electric sport utility vehicles (SUVs) are emerging as an unlikely game changer in China’s automotive market, with more than a dozen new locally developed models set to challenge German luxury brands this year.

The spacious vehicles, increasingly popular among wealthy families in mainland China, could drive a rebound in the world’s largest car and electric vehicle (EV) market as they combined Chinese EVs’ technological edge with competitive pricing, according to Morgan Stanley.

Beijing’s initiative to end profit-squeezing competition, including reining in subsidies, had spurred Chinese carmakers to accelerate launches, with six-seat SUVs a focus, said Tim Hsiao, head of the Greater China auto and shared mobility research team at Morgan Stanley.

At the recent Beijing Auto Show, brands from Nio to BYD unveiled at least 14 six-seat SUVs priced between 200,000 yuan (US$29,400) and 600,000 yuan. The roll-outs came after the average selling prices of all EVs plunged to their lowest in around three years, at 195,000 yuan last year.

“The structurally high-frequency launches will become a new norm because of the competition,” Hsiao told the South China Morning Post. “Many of the flagship SUVs are expected to be the key volume drivers,” the veteran auto analyst said, though he cautioned that demand would take time to fully assess.

Overall EV sales remained sluggish, with retail sales down 5 per cent in April, preliminary data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed.